Show GM l 1 oh w w M adventurers ADVENTURER Sy CLUB HEADLINES FROM THE LIVES OF PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF Fl 1 11 behind the curtain OU know boys and girls old lady adventure has some funny ways of sneaking up on a guy sometimes she just mes up behind your back and sometimes she drops on you m above and there are times too when she comes walking ht u up p to you from the front and you dont try to get out of her ay iy y because she is in disguise and you dont recognize her I 1 the way it was with john hoven new york city you ow john started his adventuring career as a sailor before the ast st and every sailor has half a dozen or more adventures he n tell you about but the one john remembers best is his first e a thrill ho he got in 1894 and still remembers it happened when johns ship called at the port of san icar car spain to take on a cargo of lead it was the of vember when they arrived there but the weather was still rm irm and balmy in the evening most of the crew went lore to see the sights of the town john went too and when old ady dy adventure walked up and grabbed him you know I 1 said that the old girl with the thrill bag sneaked up on hn in disguise she did she came in the clothes customarily worn by ther other lady known to the world as little rosie romance and john vei er knew the diff difference arence until it was too late t on their way into town the sailors from the ship stopped to watch a group of spanish senoritas seno ritas and senors dancing their native dances john says he thinks the dance they were doing was the fandango anyway it was the sort of dance in which a senorita who cants ants a new partner just throws her shawl around the neck of some bird on the sidelines who looks good to her john was aiji standing pretty close to the platform where the dancing was going li an on and the first thing you know a shawl was looped around his afe k neck john adds fandango to his accomplishments vs nii now john says he never was much of a dancer and fandangos fan dangos re way out of his class but this girl was a beauty and one look pm om her big round eyes had john feeling that hed dance in a barrel of d hot nails if it would please her any 1 I got away with the dance ile on that bed lay a dead man his throat slashed and blood dripping over the floor me h ow h he e s says ays and then she left the platform and motioned me to ame ame along she led me to a little cafe a two story building with a lot tables and chairs out in the open and a big canopy sloping down the kle ide of the wall there was a big bay window above this canopy and a nall side entrance led to the room above 5 the girl led john into that side entrance he followed her up the fairs irs and into a big room on the second floor she spoke to me in spanish lp anish john says but I 1 understand a word however I 1 ud F si si to everything she said she smiled and so did I 1 then she 14 bened ened a cupboard brought out some wine glasses and an empty bottle bind ad made a motion meaning that she was going to take the bottle and dive ave it filled then she left the room john could hardly believe his luck when the girl was gone he began to look around the room there was an alcove at one end with poitiers por tiers drawn across it he walked over and peeped through those curtains and right there john got the shock ot of his life in the alcove was a bed and on that bed lay a dead man his bis throat slashed and blood dripping all over the floor 1 I felt a chill run up my spine he says and for a minute I 1 was so iff ic I 1 move I 1 turned away from the grisly sight in the alcove nd ran toward towar the door I 1 turned the knob but the door give was locked john ran to the window and what he saw there made the hair stand straight up on his bis head down below in the street was the girl coming back and with her were two big husky spanish policemen john says that thousands of thoughts ran through his head then but the principal one was the realization that he was the victim of a frame up that girl had killed a man and was going to put the blame on him 8 says he 1 I knew my only chance lay in getting out of that room rhe che girl and the policemen were almost to the door now I 1 waited they were all in the hallway and then I 1 threw open the window rhey would be opening the door of the room at any moment and I 1 had 0 to o hurry swiftly climbing through the window I 1 slid down the canopy below it john finds dagger in coat pocket it was only a drop of about ten feet to the ground and the minute felt earth under my feet I 1 ran like a deer for the waterfront I 1 reached it all out of breath for I 1 had never stopped running the entire distance of af almost a mile I 1 went aboard ship and sneaked below once in the forecastle I 1 stopped to catch my breath again I 1 was still shaking like a leaf I 1 started to remove my coat and felt something in the pocket I 1 took it out it was a double edged dagger about eight inches long with a hollow groove in the middle just another link in the chain of evidence against john the girl had planted that knife in his pocket to make the case against him all the st stronger ile he hid the thing under his bis mattress and tried to calm his jumpy nerves and just then one of johns shipmates P came into the forecastle say the matter with you he wanted to know you look pale as a ghost and I 1 saw you running well sir john says he knew he could trust this pal of his so he blurted out the whole story and his shipmate laughed why he aid you just fell ell for an old swindle I 1 thought it had been played out ong ng ago in these parts that was only a dummy you saw in the room nd and the blood was probably catsup or something the police were fakers bakers nd and all they wanted to do was make you give them all your money t to bep them quiet dont play around with any of those spanish senoritas seno ritas oure playing with fire if you do released by western newspaper union 41 |